Circular-knitting machine.



J. LAWSON.

CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED MAY 31. 1912.

Patented July 25, 1916.

WITNESSES.

pnirnn STATEfl JOHN LAWSON, or CENTRAL rams,- nnonn ISLAND.

CIRCULAR-KNITTING MACHINE. I

messes.

To all whom it may concern: I Beit known that I, J OHN LAWSON, a c1t1-zen of the United States, residing at Central Falls, in the county ofProvidence. and State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Circular-Knitting Machines, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to automatic circular knitting machines, and itconsists in the novel construction and arrangement of parts, ashereinafter set forth.

In certain types of knitting-machines, the transferring of knitted ftopsto the needles is frequently attended with breakage or injury to some ofthe sinkers and needles and also to the transfer-rings grooved points.Such defects are largely due to the fact that while the latch-guard israised the positioned transfer-ring is adapted to temporarily revolvesimultaneously with the cylinder and its guided sinkers and needles; thesinker-cam ring employed for moving the sinkers inward and outward atcertain places while the parts referred to are thus revolving being heldagainst rotation, so that if, in the event any of said needles, sinkeror point members happen to be slightly out of axial alinement or truethe inner ends of such sinkers, in moving inward from the extremeoutward position, are liable to engage the adjacent grooved point or itsneedle, or both, resulting in material injury to the parts and possiblyto the top itself.

The objectI have in view is to provide lmitting-machines of the generaltype referred to with means such that the injury andloss formerlyattending the transferring operation will be practically eliminated,

thereby materially increasing the efficiency of the machine. This resultis accomplished by permitting the sinker-cam ring to revolveconcurrently with the needle-cylinder, thereby temporarily preventingendwisemovement of the sinkers and rendering them, for the time being,relatively stationary with the points .-.of the transfer-ring.

In the accompanying sheet of drawings, Figure 1 represents a top planview of the revoluble needle-cylinder, its relatively stationary cap orsinker-cam ring for normally causing the sinkers to move in an endwiseor radial direction while they are at the same time revolving bodilywith the needlecylinder and its sinker-ring, some of the parts beingomitted; Fig. 2 is a side eleva- Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 31, 1912. Serial No. 700,569.

Patented July 25, 1916.

tion, in reduced scale, of the upper portion" of the needle-cylinder,the sinker-ring and its cam-ring, showing a transfer-ring positioned onthe cylinder while they are being rotated to elevate the needles intothe respective quills or points, the latch-guard" meanwhile beingelevated; Fig. 3 is a partial transverse sectional view, enlarged scale,

on lines 3-3 of Figs. 1 and 4; Fig. 4 is a partial horizontal sectionalview, taken substantially on line 4-4 of Fig. 3; and Fig. 5 is aninverted plan view, in reduced scale, showingportions of the sinker-camring.

It may be stated that only enough of the parts of a revoluble needlecarrying cylinderknitting-machine are represented to show the positionand relation of the transfer-ring thereto when the transfer operation isbeing eflected. v a I .4

A,in the drawings, indicates the revoluble needle-cylinder, or ratherthe upper portion of it, to which is secured a sinker-ring g,-supportinga concentric cap or sinker-cam ring 0; these members serve conjointly tobodily rotate the sinkers and also to move them inward and outward atcertain places during the normal knitting operation, in a well-knownway.- Now, in order to allow the ring C, normally held against completerotation, to revolve with the cylinder while the transference of the topto the empty needles is taking place, the transfer-ring B, having itsquills or points I inserted through the respective loops or stitches ofthe top,

is placed centrally upon the member C; the latch-guard being firstelevated, as indicated n Flg. 2, the result being to move all theneedles upward into the loop-carrying quills while the needle-cylinderis being temporarily manually rotated one or more turns,

and so that upon removing the ring element;

13 the top will be leftpositioned upon the .needles to be theninterknitted into the fabric, as usual.

Thedrawings represent a post e to which the shank a of'the latch-guard Dis pivoted at 6 hen the member D is dropped to the normal or horizontalposition, the presence of its arm a, then interposed between theinwardly facing separated horizontal 'stops f, f, adjustably mounted inthe uprights 0 of the U-shaped bracket member 0 fixed to the top of saidring C, prevents the latter from revolving with the cylinder, al-

though permitting it to vibrate slightly back forth during reciprocatoryknitting-i in place by means of the set or clamp-screws 0 When, however,the latch-guard is raised, such raising of the latch guard will move thearm (I, out of line with said stops, and so that the sinker-cam-ring Cwill-then be free to rotate with the needle-cylinder, and by reason ofthe friction between the parts will rotate therewith, thereby preventingany inward movement of the sinkers and avoiding the danger of the innerends of the sinkcrs bcingbrought into contact with either the needles orthe points of the transfer-ring.

In knitting-machines, in which the needlecylinder rotates and in normalaction), the sinker-cam ring thereof is practically nonrevoluble, exceptas just stated,the cam 03 at the same time causing the previouslyretracted sinkers to move inward ator near the point (Z, or where theneedles receive the knitting-thread. Fig. 1 shows the relation of theparts in normal knitting. In transferring tops to the needles, however,the

act of rotating the cylinder one or two revolutions in order to forcethe needles upward into the quills ot the transfer-ring B positioned onthe ring C also acts to impart independent movement to thesinkers(radially) while they are in engagement with the cam (Z, and as the headportions of the sinkers at said cam point are then wholly in front ofthe corresponding needles and quills, the nose part 0 of the thus movingsinkers a re liable to engage the needles or quills and cause breakageor serious injury to them,

and necessitating replacement by new members. Fig. 4' indicates thedirection of the inwardly extending smkers 0 in normally movmg in thenarrow space formed between the adjacent sides of the quills; 0designates the heads over which stitches are cast into the web, and 0"the nose 01' point. One of the latter, sprung laterally out of true, isshownat 0. Obviously, a further inward movement of the sinker wouldresult in more or less damage to'the parts. By the present construct-ionsuch inward movement of the sinkers is prevented and the liability ofbreakage or injury referred to is avoided.

In lieu of providing the ring C with 'out- ,wardly projectingstop-carrying arms in placing its shank a between the two stops f-j seeFig. 1. Upon restarting the machine to produce normal rotary or plainknitting, the said element G will be held against rotation by one or theother of thestops f, according to the direction of the cylindersmovement. Of course. a degree of oscillation or play, is permitted inorder to insure a better intake of the thread into the needles hooks atthe thread-feeding point, as usual.

I claim:

1. In a circular lmitting-nrachine, the combination .with revolubleneedle-cylinder, of a sinl-:er-carrying ring secured to and revolublewith said cylinder, at frictionally mounted normally non-revolublesinkercam-ring supported by said sinker-ring, a manually controlledpivoted latch-guard normally encircling the upper portion of theneedles, and peripherally spaced'stops secured to said can'i-ring andnormally engagezble with the latch-guard for controlling th shortangular movements of the cap-ring during the production of normalcircular and reci n'ocatory knitting, ar-' upper end of theneedle-cylinder, and lat-.

orally spaced stops fixed to the said sinkerring; said stops beingnormally engageable with a member of the latch-guard for limiting thevibratory movements of the sinker cam-ring, the latter being adapted, torevolve freely in unison with the needle-cylinder when the. latch-guardis swung rupwardly from the circular path of said stops.

3. In a knitting-machine of the general character described, thecombination of the revoluhle needle-cylinder, a sinker-cam-ring normallymounted for vibratory movement on top of the needle-cylinder, a pivotedlatch-guard, and means constituting stops, carried by the cam-ring andengageable with a member of the latch-guard when the latter is in thenormally dropped position for limiting the angular vibratory movementsof the cam-ring; said stops being adjustable relatively to each otherfor varying the degree of said angular vibratory movements of thecap-ring, the latter being capable of complete rotation concurrentlywith the needle-cylinder upon swinging the latch-guard upwardly from itsnormal posi-.

v tion to disengage it from said stops.

incense vided with a revoluble needle-cylinder, a sinker-ring secured tothe cylinder and a sinker-cam-ringfrictionallysupportedthere-- on, thecombination therewith of a bracket member fixed to the cam-ring, saidbracket member having a pair of horizontally arranged stops alining witheach other adjustably mounted thereon, means'for holding the'stops insuch adjusted positions, and a manually controlled relatively stationarypivoted latch-guard normally positioned above the needlecylinder, saidguard hav ing a member engageable with said stops for limiting theangular movements of the camring, arranged whereby upon swinging thelatch-gualttll upward out of the circular path of the stops; thecylinder and cam-ring are adapted to revolve bodily in unison so as totemporarily prevent endwise movements of the sinkers in'the said sinkerand cap-rings for the purpose set forth.

5. In a knitting machine, the combination, with a revolubleneedle-cylinder, of a sinker-ring revoluble with said cylinder, asinker-cam-ring frictionally mounted on said sinker-ring, and means fornormally holding said sinker-cam-ring from rotating with saidneedle-cylinder, said holding means being adapted to be released topermit said sinker-cam-ring" to rotate with said cylinder.

6. In a. knitting machine, the combination, with a revolubleneedle-cylinder, of a sinkerring revoluble with said cylinder, atsinker-cain-ring frictionally mounted. on said sinker-ring, a pivotedlatch-guard, a stop carried by said sinker-cam-ring and adapted toengage said latch-guard in its normal position to normally hold saidsinkercam ,-ring. from rotating with said needlecylinder, whereby, whensaid latchguard is raised, said sinker-cam-ring will befree to rotatewith said cylinder.

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

, JOHN Lawson.

Witnesses: l

Geo. H. REMINGTON, CALVIN H. Emma.

